2022 Season Game Notes

[SimpleCoach]

Tufts @ Wesleyan University
9.13.2022

- Playing on turf.  Thought Wesleyan played on grass?
- Wesleyan in All Black
- Tufts in their Light Blues.
- Wesleyan is pressing very high on Tufts.
- Wesleyan with a nice play for a shot.  Sent ball across to back post.  Player settled and hit the ball wide of the far post.
- Wesleyan now sitting back deep defending in numbers making it difficult for Tufts to find any opening in the back.
- Both teams are runnin' and gunnin'.  Need to gain control of the tempo.  I would say that Tufts should use its talent to get control of the ball and move it around quickly.
- Tufts getting closer to goal.  Some good passing to open up the Wesleyan defense.
- 30 minutes left.
- Wesleyan 0, Tufts 0
- Will say, Smith Field is pretty impressive looking.  Is this a new place?
- I think Tufts needs to shorten its passes instead of trying the imprecise, long and mid range balls.  Think their attacks would be so much more impressive.
- Wesleyan does have the capacity to surprise Tufts with a quick break.  Just had a good attack that ended with a good header on net, but went to the Keeper.
- Think Tufts will take advantage of a corner at some point this game.
- Wesleyan needs to get some control of the ball, if only so they can take a breather defensively.  Dealing with a lot of pressure from Tufts.
- Another opportunity for Tufts that the Wesleyan Keeper saves.
- Wesleyan also needs to keep the ball on the deck.  Don't think I have seen them win a head ball.
- Another Tufts shot that for the second time in a row, the Wesleyan Keeper spills and gets awfully close to giving up a rebound...
- Wesleyan defender literally passed to a Tufts forward that put the Wesleyan Keeper in a one on one.  Keeper got to the ball first, but that's not the way Wesleyan is going to win a game.
- Tufts dominating offensively but Wesleyan doing well defensively.
- With 12:15s left, there is a lightening delay.
- After the delay, it start out ... understandably so ... choppy and messy.
- Tuft with an opportunity with a header on goal that is tipped over the cross bar for a corner.
- Halftime.
- Shorten half from the Announcer said.
- Not sure I would judge anything about the 12 minutes after the delay.  And really don't know what to expect in the second half.
- Would say, am surprised with how often the Tufts backs send the ball forward.  Very little working the ball through the middle.
- Ok.  Not sure I am saying this right.  But this is the second time I've watched Tufts this year.  They seem to play to the level of the team they are playing.  It looks a lot closer than it should be?  I get it.  NESCAC.  Tough conference with many good teams, but I am expecting a bit more of a domineering performance than I have seen so far.  There I said it.
Wesleyan is keeping Tufts away from goal.  And as I type this, Tufts just gets a shot that the Wesleyan Keeper manages a finger tip save to push the ball wide.
- 20 minutes left in the second half.
- Except for the back four, I am not sure Tufts has positional discipline. Maybe that is by design, but it makes moving the ball, at least in my view, a bit more difficult.
- 15 left.
- Wesleyan is doing a good job of controlling the run of play right now.  Have Tufts a bit on their heals.
- Think Wesleyan does some things well, but then fails in the worst times to do the basics, the details of the game.
- Wesleyan really trying to press the Tufts back line.
- 11 minutes left.
- And a free kick off to the right of the Tufts Keeper for Wesleyan.  Sends in a beautiful near post ball that is glanced and goes into the back of the net.
- Wesleyan 1, Tufts 0
- 9:30 left in the game.
- Great opportunity to even it up, but Tufts forward sends it over the bar.
- 5 minutes left and Tufts with a corner.  Cleared to midfield. 
- Wesleyan just clearing everything as far as they can.
- Whomever is taking the set pieces and corners for Tufts should not be taking the free kicks and corners for Tufts.
- Tufts naturally rushing so much, that they are wasting balls and just panicking.
- 2 minutes left.
- Game is over.  Wesleyan with the win.
- Wesleyan 1, Tufts 0.

[Ejay]

I've got my eye on that Weslyan team.  They're loaded with talented players who my son played with and against. And I find the Montclair pipeline fascinating. 6 kids from Montclair HS, plus Wheeler from the private HS (MKA) next door.  By the way, those Montclair teams were loaded which just goes to show that you can have a great experience and successful career when you stay and play for your HS instead of jumping to Academy only. I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...
Mason Davisson   Weslyan
Evan O'Brien   Weslyan
Ben Ceccio   F&M
Felipe Gutierrez   Williams
Xavier Harris   Rutgers-Camden
Aidan McGrath   Arcadia
Mateo Neighbors   Weslyan (via St. Johns)
Dylan Schulman   Carnegie Mellon
Soren Tollis   Weslyan

[SlideTackle]

Tufts @ Wesleyan University
9.13.2022

- Playing on turf.  Thought Wesleyan played on grass?
- Wesleyan in All Black
- Tufts in their Light Blues.
- Wesleyan is pressing very high on Tufts.
- Wesleyan with a nice play for a shot.  Sent ball across to back post.  Player settled and hit the ball wide of the far post.
- Wesleyan now sitting back deep defending in numbers making it difficult for Tufts to find any opening in the back.
- Both teams are runnin' and gunnin'.  Need to gain control of the tempo.  I would say that Tufts should use its talent to get control of the ball and move it around quickly.
- Tufts getting closer to goal.  Some good passing to open up the Wesleyan defense.
- 30 minutes left.
- Wesleyan 0, Tufts 0
- Will say, Smith Field is pretty impressive looking.  Is this a new place?
- I think Tufts needs to shorten its passes instead of trying the imprecise, long and mid range balls.  Think their attacks would be so much more impressive.
- Wesleyan does have the capacity to surprise Tufts with a quick break.  Just had a good attack that ended with a good header on net, but went to the Keeper.
- Think Tufts will take advantage of a corner at some point this game.
- Wesleyan needs to get some control of the ball, if only so they can take a breather defensively.  Dealing with a lot of pressure from Tufts.
- Another opportunity for Tufts that the Wesleyan Keeper saves.
- Wesleyan also needs to keep the ball on the deck.  Don't think I have seen them win a head ball.
- Another Tufts shot that for the second time in a row, the Wesleyan Keeper spills and gets awfully close to giving up a rebound...
- Wesleyan defender literally passed to a Tufts forward that put the Wesleyan Keeper in a one on one.  Keeper got to the ball first, but that's not the way Wesleyan is going to win a game.
- Tufts dominating offensively but Wesleyan doing well defensively.
- With 12:15s left, there is a lightening delay.
- After the delay, it start out ... understandably so ... choppy and messy.
- Tuft with an opportunity with a header on goal that is tipped over the cross bar for a corner.
- Halftime.
- Shorten half from the Announcer said.
- Not sure I would judge anything about the 12 minutes after the delay.  And really don't know what to expect in the second half.
- Would say, am surprised with how often the Tufts backs send the ball forward.  Very little working the ball through the middle.
- Ok.  Not sure I am saying this right.  But this is the second time I've watched Tufts this year.  They seem to play to the level of the team they are playing.  It looks a lot closer than it should be?  I get it.  NESCAC.  Tough conference with many good teams, but I am expecting a bit more of a domineering performance than I have seen so far.  There I said it.
Wesleyan is keeping Tufts away from goal.  And as I type this, Tufts just gets a shot that the Wesleyan Keeper manages a finger tip save to push the ball wide.
- 20 minutes left in the second half.
- Except for the back four, I am not sure Tufts has positional discipline. Maybe that is by design, but it makes moving the ball, at least in my view, a bit more difficult.
- 15 left.
- Wesleyan is doing a good job of controlling the run of play right now.  Have Tufts a bit on their heals.
- Think Wesleyan does some things well, but then fails in the worst times to do the basics, the details of the game.
- Wesleyan really trying to press the Tufts back line.
- 11 minutes left.
- And a free kick off to the right of the Tufts Keeper for Wesleyan.  Sends in a beautiful near post ball that is glanced and goes into the back of the net.
- Wesleyan 1, Tufts 0
- 9:30 left in the game.
- Great opportunity to even it up, but Tufts forward sends it over the bar.
- 5 minutes left and Tufts with a corner.  Cleared to midfield. 
- Wesleyan just clearing everything as far as they can.
- Whomever is taking the set pieces and corners for Tufts should not be taking the free kicks and corners for Tufts.
- Tufts naturally rushing so much, that they are wasting balls and just panicking.
- 2 minutes left.
- Game is over.  Wesleyan with the win.
- Wesleyan 1, Tufts 0.

Thanks for the great recap.  This was a great win for the Cards.  Devany made some terrific saves to keep the score even.  Tufts was dominating the first half until the lightening delay and if they came out of it down 0-1 I suspect Wesleyan would have had a difficult time getting a point.

As for you question about the field, they typically play on that field (Smith Field) at night under the lights or when the weather makes the grass field unplayable.

[camosfan]

Masur at Bucknell.

[camosfan]

I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...


Masur, at Bucknell. I also think there is a kid that went to Wash U.

[paclassic89]

I've got my eye on that Weslyan team.  They're loaded with talented players who my son played with and against. And I find the Montclair pipeline fascinating. 6 kids from Montclair HS, plus Wheeler from the private HS (MKA) next door.  By the way, those Montclair teams were loaded which just goes to show that you can have a great experience and successful career when you stay and play for your HS instead of jumping to Academy only. I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...
Mason Davisson   Weslyan
Evan O'Brien   Weslyan
Ben Ceccio   F&M
Felipe Gutierrez   Williams
Xavier Harris   Rutgers-Camden
Aidan McGrath   Arcadia
Mateo Neighbors   Weslyan (via St. Johns)
Dylan Schulman   Carnegie Mellon
Soren Tollis   Weslyan

Well yeah, they're all playing D3.  Most of the Academy only kids probably went D1

[camosfan]

Well yeah, they're all playing D3.  Most of the Academy only kids probably went D1


there are quite a few D3 teams that could compete in some of the D1 leagues, there are also players playing D3 that could start at elite D1 schools.

[Flying Weasel]

-  Wait, since when are the Capital Crusaders the Capital Comets?

Apparently the new name was announced at the end of September of last year. 

Capital becomes the sixth Division III athletic program to drop the Crusaders nickname:

• Wheaton (Ill.)  -  Crusaders to Thunder  -  2000
• Eastern Nazarene  -  Crusaders to Lions  -  2009
• Maranatha Baptist  -  Crusaders to Sabercats  -  2014
• Susquehanna  -  Crusaders to River Hawks  -  2016
• Alvernia  -  Crusaders to Golden Wolves  -  2017
• Capital  -  Crusaders* to Comets  -  2021

     * Fighting Lutherans until 1963

[SimpleCoach]

Two of my favorites names.... Lords and Crusaders meet their untimely demise.  Although look, Fighting Lutherans, is pretty off the hook as well.

SC.

[SlideTackle]

I've got my eye on that Weslyan team.  They're loaded with talented players who my son played with and against. And I find the Montclair pipeline fascinating. 6 kids from Montclair HS, plus Wheeler from the private HS (MKA) next door.  By the way, those Montclair teams were loaded which just goes to show that you can have a great experience and successful career when you stay and play for your HS instead of jumping to Academy only. I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...
Mason Davisson   Weslyan
Evan O'Brien   Weslyan
Ben Ceccio   F&M
Felipe Gutierrez   Williams
Xavier Harris   Rutgers-Camden
Aidan McGrath   Arcadia
Mateo Neighbors   Weslyan (via St. Johns)
Dylan Schulman   Carnegie Mellon
Soren Tollis   Weslyan

Well yeah, they're all playing D3.  Most of the Academy only kids probably went D1

Take a look at the Conn roster: https://camelathletics.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster

I count 6 players from MLS Next teams.  There are MLS Next players on other Nescac teams, including Middlebury, Tufts, Williams and Wesleyan. 

Notice too that those Montclair players mostly went to pretty strong academic schools to play soccer. 

[Ejay]

I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...


Masur, at Bucknell. I also think there is a kid that went to Wash U.

Masur had graduated already and wasn't on that 2020 roster.

[camosfan]

Masur and Mason graduated the same year, they both played on my son's MatchFit team, my kid has a November birthday so he  was the youngest on the 2019 team, next year Evan joined.

[Falconer]

Two of my favorites names.... Lords and Crusaders meet their untimely demise.  Although look, Fighting Lutherans, is pretty off the hook as well.

SC.

My high school team was known as the "Lords," but that was half a century ago and that HS no longer exists owing to consolidation.

Apparently it's still OK to call yourselves the "Fighting Irish," or the "Deamon Deacons," as long as the implicit slur is directed at your own people, just as certain non-white (only) rappers are allowed to use the "N" word.

Of course, some might regard the use of "Falcons" or "Bears" or even "Banana Slugs" as simply "speciesist," and thus unacceptable. Crazy world.

[paclassic89]

I've got my eye on that Weslyan team.  They're loaded with talented players who my son played with and against. And I find the Montclair pipeline fascinating. 6 kids from Montclair HS, plus Wheeler from the private HS (MKA) next door.  By the way, those Montclair teams were loaded which just goes to show that you can have a great experience and successful career when you stay and play for your HS instead of jumping to Academy only. I may be missing some, but the 2020 roster included...
Mason Davisson   Weslyan
Evan O'Brien   Weslyan
Ben Ceccio   F&M
Felipe Gutierrez   Williams
Xavier Harris   Rutgers-Camden
Aidan McGrath   Arcadia
Mateo Neighbors   Weslyan (via St. Johns)
Dylan Schulman   Carnegie Mellon
Soren Tollis   Weslyan

Well yeah, they're all playing D3.  Most of the Academy only kids probably went D1

Take a look at the Conn roster: https://camelathletics.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster

I count 6 players from MLS Next teams.  There are MLS Next players on other Nescac teams, including Middlebury, Tufts, Williams and Wesleyan. 

Notice too that those Montclair players mostly went to pretty strong academic schools to play soccer.

The comment was about high school vs. Academy only.  Anybody who has played within the past 15 years knows there is a huge quality difference between the two.   Most players should play Academy (or equivalent) over high school if they have the choice

[Gregory Sager]

Two of my favorites names.... Lords and Crusaders meet their untimely demise.  Although look, Fighting Lutherans, is pretty off the hook as well.

SC.

Here in the midwest, "Fighting Lutherans" means that somebody cut in line at the potluck in the church basement in order to get the last remaining serving of Mrs. Larsen's noodle casserole.